


could he be my lover or is all of this pretend?

by phantasticphun



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: Abandoned Work - Unfinished and Discontinued, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Friends to Lovers, Happy Ending, Implied/Referenced Sex, M/M, Mentions of alcohol, Model Phil Lester, Musician Dan Howell, Swearing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-16
Updated: 2019-11-30
Packaged: 2020-12-24 15:13:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,852
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21101543
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/phantasticphun/pseuds/phantasticphun
Summary: Going into the music industry isn’t always the glamorous life most people make it out to be and maybe the newest star singer-songwriter, Daniel Howell, should’ve realized that before signing his contract. There’s nothing he can do now, though, even when he’s roped into pretending to be in a relationship with his one-night-stand, Phil Lester, in order to fix the mess they’ve made (even if it didn’t really need fixing in the first place).





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> hello everyone! this is for [phanfictionevent's](https://phanfictionevents.tumblr.com) collab event on tumblr! 
> 
> a collab fic between mikey ([sudden-sky](https://sudden-sky.tumblr.com)) and nikki, ([phantasticphun](https://phantasticphun.tumblr.com)). we hope you enjoy our silly little story! :)

The electric bass pounds in his ears and he’s had more than one too many drinks. The people that surround them don’t even care where Dan is anymore; it’s too late and they’ve all drank too much and they’ve certainly all forgotten the actual purpose of this party.

Dan doesn’t even care that this party was once, several hours ago, a party to celebrate him and his successful new album release. He’s far too distracted by the man in front of him right now to care at all. 

What he’s gathered so far is that his name is Phil and he’s some kind of model. And rightly so, Dan thinks, he’s certainly hot enough to be a model, with his iced chocolate quiff and sharp cheekbones and beautiful eyes. The lights are dimmed in this room, but he’s pretty sure his eyes are beautiful, at least. He thinks they’re blue. He’s mesmerised by those gorgeous eyes.

He and Phil have been making small-talk for a while now. Dan’s not sure if it’s because it’s dark all around them, they’ve both had too much or drink, or that he’s supposed to be the main attraction here, but Phil seems into him. And he seems into Phil.

The bass is still pounding and they’re still sipping cocktails between sentences. The people around them are still shuffling around and  _ thank god  _ they’re not paying any attention to him and Phil because they keep inching closer and closer.

Dan can smell the alcohol on Phil’s breath, now, and he really likes the way his hand is slowly slipping up his thigh. Phil looks delicious enough to devour and he really just wants to taste him and sure, maybe it’s a little weird that Phil’s like a three-course meal in Dan’s mind right now, but he wants nothing more than that mouth on his own. 

He stares into his  _ absolutely _ blue eyes until his gaze drops lower to those lovely pink lips. Phil’s mouth curls into a smirk and once again, suddenly, Dan’s looking into his eyes. At that moment, they realize that they’ve got exactly the same idea.

Dan kisses him fiercely and soon enough, they’re all over each other. They don’t let go until they can’t breathe.

“Do you wanna... head over to my place?” Phil asks. He’s got a more unsure smile on now, and Dan could never say no to something as absolutely adorable as that face.

He nods breathlessly and without a word to anyone else-- like Dan could care about anyone else while Phil’s dragging him along like this-- they’re out the door.

-

Dan wakes up in a room that doesn’t look familiar to him. It’s bright and colourful. There’s a dead plant in the corner, and an overflowing laundry hamper right next to it. The room doesn’t have any blinds, so the light from the sun illuminates the room. It’s vastly different from his neat and monochrome-aesthetic bedroom. His head is pounding and he feels like death is coming for him. He rubs his eyes and sits up, only to see a sleeping figure next to him on the bed. His heart is racing, and his breathing grows heavy, but he tries not to wake up the person sleeping next to him. Realisation of what happened last night starts sinking in, and he also remembers that the guy’s name is Phil and he’s a model and if anyone has a faintest clue as to what they got up to last night, they’re definitely going to get in trouble for this.

Phil starts stirring, and when Dan sees Phil’s arm reach out, he immediately gets up from the bed and rushes to put his clothes back on. If Phil wasn’t awake already, he’d definitely be now because Dan’s bouncing on one leg, trying to get his black skinny jeans on.

“Hey, where are you going?” Phil asks, groggily. His eyes are red and Dan hears him wince as he blinks. Phil rolls over to his bedside table and reaches for his contacts case.

Dan’s not really sure how to respond to that, but he has to get out of there  _ now.  _ “I have to go, I’m so sorry.” After he finally gets those damn skinny jeans on, he quickly puts on his shirt and then slips on his socks and shoes. It takes him a minute to tie the laces and the panic and pressure surely isn’t helping him.

“Wait! Last night was great and all, but I wanna get to—” 

Dan turns back to look at Phil for a second. His eyes are still red from his contacts, but he’s wearing glasses now, like _ that _ would help. Dan bolts out before he can finish his sentence.

-

It’s sometime in the afternoon, and Dan’s in his office working on a demo that’s been sitting in his work-in-progress folder for too long. It’s cold in the office, he wished he had his jacket with him, but he can’t seem to remember where he left it at. The thought of Phil is only in the corner of his mind as he’s composing. Even though he just released an album, he feels restless not working on something. He hears the phone ring, and when he sees his manager’s name pop up, he immediately drops what he’s doing to pick up the call.

“Sofia, what’s up?” 

She doesn’t bother saying hello to him. “What were you up to last night after the party?”

Dan has a smirk on his face as he remembers what happened the night before. “I don’t think you want to know.”

Sofia sighs. “Dan, come on, this is serious. There are some photos circling around and I need to get the facts straight—”

He snorts at the implication that there was absolutely anything  _ straight _ happening last night.

“—before I set up a meeting between the… parties invloved.”

His eyes go wide when Sofia continues. “Meeting? What the hell is happening?”

“Answer the question, Dan.” Her voice has gone flat.

Dan gets quiet for a minute before he starts stuttering. “Well… uh… I may or may not have  _ spent the night _ with someone.”

“Ha ha, Howell,” she dead-pans. “You don’t need to dance around what really happened with me. Getting to the point, some photos of you and your Mr. Hookup have surfaced and we need to diffuse the situation before it gets completely out of hand.”

“Do we have to?” Dan groans. He does  _ not _ need his stupid, drunken decision to tarnish his glittering new musical career. “It’s just... a hookup. A one-time thing. People have them all the time! What’s wrong with that?”

“It doesn’t work like that in this world. I know you’re new and all here, but you can’t just go around screwing every other guy you meet. There are rules here.” Sofia sighs. “Back to the point, who was he?”

“A model. His name’s Phil. Honestly, I’d never even seen him before, but he was at the party last night. I don’t have his contact information.”

“Of course you don’t.” She scoffs and Dan can practically hear her rolling her eyes. What was he supposed to do? Ask him for his life story while something  _ definitely _ besides a chocolate bar was in his mouth? “I’ll find it,” she continues, “In the meantime, lie low.”

“Alright. Talk to you later.” He hangs up the phone and puts it in his pocket before going out of his office and to his bedroom to take a nap. His motivation to work has dissipated with the “situation” that he now has to fix.

-

Dan’s having a hard time laying low. He knows it’s because of his control-freak tendencies, but he wants to see what exactly got out there and he wants to somehow fix it. He knows, though, that he’ll certainly just end up making this whole situation worse by trying to fix it himself. He needs to heed Sofia’s advice but  _ god _ , does he not want to.

He’s pacing back and forth in his living room, now, because when he’s not writing music he’s usually on the internet and he can’t exactly do that at the moment. Perhaps, he thinks, music is just the answer to all of this, so he goes over to sit at his white upright piano and bangs out some chords for the hell of it. They don’t even sound good together, but it’s not like he cares at the moment. He feels almost sick right now and it’s not because of a hangover. He could have easily just destroyed his whole career and maybe even Phil’s, too. He can’t stop ruminating on that thought and he’s thinking of some lyrics, dark ones that reflect the sickening, suffocating feeling surrounding him, and soon enough, he’s playing more than just some random chords. He’s playing a song. 

_ Take me back to before last night, _

_ ‘Cause now things aren’t right, _

_ Although you felt more than great. _

_ Take me back to before those shots, _

_ That clouded my thoughts, _

_ I need to tell myself to wait. _

_ It’s bittersweet and strange, _

_ That you caused all this change, _

_ But please, oh please, will you take me back? _

Dan laughs at himself. It’s a wet kind of laugh, one that’s bubbling out despite the almost-tears in his eyes. Dan, honestly, doesn’t know why he’s doing either-- laughing or holding back tears. The fact of the matter is that writing a song is ridiculous, but it’s almost cathartic, in a way. Does he really want to go back? Well, honestly, he can’t really answer that question for himself right now, but all he knows is that he wishes he were not in this mess.

-

After dinner, Sofia calls him again.

“We’re meeting with Phil and his manager, Ingrid Eliza, tomorrow at my office building,” she says. “Ten o’clock, Room 246. Don’t be late.”

Dan says, “I won’t be, thanks Sofia,” and hangs up.

Somehow, he’s tearing up and humming that song again. He doesn’t want to face Phil in the morning.


	2. Chapter 2

Dan can’t sleep later that night. He feels extremely warm and beads of sweat are running down from his forehead to his neck. The anxiety seems to be getting to him, and he doesn’t have any sleeping pills or melatonin in the medicine cabinet. Go figure. He’s trying desperately not to go on the internet though. That could certainly turn out badly.

He looks over at the clock on his wall, only for it to read _ 2:46 AM _. Well shit, there goes his plans of going to bed early. 

“Fuck it,_ ” _he grumbles to himself. He grabs his laptop from the bedside table and opens up Safari, googling “daniel howell scandal.”

About ten or so news articles pop up, some from tabloids, some from actually reputable sources. He clicks on one titled, “Overnight Music Sensation Daniel Howell Caught Smooching Model Phil Lester.” He snorts at the title but figures it’s accurate enough and reads it.

_ Last night, musician Daniel Howell was caught kissing model Phil Lester at Howell’s album release party. (See pictures below.) The rising star hasn’t exactly been secret about his sexuality-- in fact, he is quite an advocate for both mental health awareness and LGBTQ+ rights-- but this is the first time that his relationship status has been in question. _

_ ... _

_ Howell’s album, _ An Atmosphere of Affinity _ is now streaming on all major streaming platforms and is available on CD as well as vinyl. _

He slams closed his MacBook and throws it on the floor.

_ “Caught kissing,” _ like what he was doing was illegal. 

_ “Caught kissing,” _ like he’s some naughty child stealing a cookie from a jar.

_ “Caught kissing,” _ like he’s a criminal, caught red-handed performing his crime.

The wording makes him sick. If he was kissing a girl, would they make it sound so accusatory? The tabloids would probably still be as interested, but would they make such a big deal of his advocacy in mental health _ and _ gay rights in the same article? He hates how the article makes it sound like those two things are connected-- like the reason he’s queer is because he’s depressed. Or he’s depressed because he’s queer. 

He flops down on his pillow. He loves music more than anything, but sometimes he wonders why he ever thought trying to make it big was a good idea. He knows he shouldn’t complain, since so many people work their whole life for a _ fraction _ of what Dan has now, but sometimes he thinks that being a celebrity and overnight sensation has no right being as difficult as it is. He supposes that that’s the curse of fame: some people love you obsessively and some people want to ridicule and bully you until you want to quit everything.

The benefits don’t outweigh the drawbacks.

Dan wants to quit everything.

-

“Alright, so I understand we have a situation on our hands?” Ingrid says as she walks into the room with a Starbucks latte in her hand. Her dark high ponytail bounces as she strides in. She’s twenty minutes late. Everyone else made it to the meeting on time. Dan notices that the latte still has ice, that it’s new. 

“Really shows where her priorities lie,” Dan gripes quietly. Sofia, who’s beside him, just tells him to keep calm and be professional. 

As Ingrid gets settled, Dan rolls his eyes. After seeing the pictures, it’d hardly be a situation for over ninety-percent of the population. His stomach feels like the anger is bubbling inside of him and is ready to explode because he’s stuck in a situation that he shouldn’t be in. Why can’t anyone give him his rightful privacy? Just because he’s a household name, now, doesn’t mean that he shouldn’t be treated like a person. Nonetheless, he forces himself to keep calm.

Sofia starts speaking but Ingrid doesn’t allow her to finish her sentence. She immediately pulls up the images on her iPad and rather dramatically states, “These are what we’re dealing with, everybody.” They’re the same ones that Dan saw last night. It’s the kiss that him and Phil shared at the party, nothing more than that. Phil’s not groping Dan’s ass and Dan’s not grinding against Phil. They’re just _ kissing _ and the only reason it’s causing this much trouble is because they’re both men with some weight with their names.

He and Phil keep making eye awkward contact. They pause for a moment and then look in any other direction. They’re in a meeting room and are diagonally sat across from each other, with Ingrid and Sofia truly in the middle of the conversation. Dan feels absolutely horrible that he tried to run out of Phil’s life two days ago and he feels even worse that he was certainly the cause of this whole mess, but he can’t gauge Phil’s emotion because he hasn’t said a single word.

“I’ll just get to the point,” Ingrid says, and Dan groans again, because if she was really so concerned, she should’ve been here twenty minutes ago. “I think you two need to date.”

Dan and Phil make eye contact once again and it breaks Dan’s heart to see Phil’s weary face.

“But he…” Phil sighs. “He’s not really interested. He was drunk. We were both drunk and we made a bad decision.”

Dan’s heart drops when he hears Phil say that it was a “bad decision.” Does Phil really regret this? Does Phil hate him now? 

Dan wants to say something, _ anything_, but Ingrid interjects.

“The plan is simple,” she says, as if any plan is truly simple. “Dan and Phil will go out together in public places such as restaurants, have some photo shoots and interviews together, a couple of PR things, all of that. Leave those details up to Sophie and I.”

“Sofia,” she mumbles.

“Not the point. You guys will keep this up for a few months, and then after your appearance at _ The Melody Globe Awards_, you’ll call it off and that’ll be the end of it.”

“What makes you think we’ll agree to this ‘plan’ of yours?” Dan asks, his eyes flicking over to Phil for a minute. If Phil’s not going to be friendly, Dan’s not going to be either.

“It’ll be a perfect way to fix this situation and have everyone shut about those paparazzi pictures. Besides,” Ingrid’s eyes light up, “Think of all the revenue we could bring in. It’ll bring exposure to Phil’s photo shoots and more sales for Dan’s album. And it’ll definitely bring in a _ new _ type of audience.”

Dan doesn’t like the way she says “new,” as if queer people are a new, exotic species on the Earth. He tunes out of whatever Ingrid and Sofia are saying, it’ll be easier to just go along with whatever they’ve come up with once they’re done prattling on.

“Why don’t we let Dan speak for himself and see if he’s okay with this idea?” Sofia asks.

Dan’s head perks up when he hears his name. “Yeah, sure, go ahead.”

“Dan, are you sure you want to do this?” Phil asks, those blue eyes searing into him.

Dan scoffs and shrugs. “Yeah, of course. Whatever. What could go wrong?”

Phil practically snorts. “Well, lots of things could go wrong. First off, we’d be totally pretending to be a relationship. And that could end interestingly, at the very least. And, also, I can model, but my acting is not… the best.”

Dan lets out a _ pffft _ of air. “How hard is acting? It’s just exaggerated lying! People do it all the time, loosen up a little. If you’re really that worried, just practice in front of the mirror.” 

Phil looks at him uneasily but gives up with his excuse. He sighs. “Okay. We’ll do it. We’ll agree to fake-date to get the paparazzi off our back.”

“Great. Glad we could solve this!” There’s a sinister grin on Ingrid’s face. She stands up, walks over to the door, and then holds open it for everyone to get out.

They get the cue and make their way into the hallway as Ingrid says to Sofia, “We better come up with specifics without them, don’t you think?”

Sofia looks incredulous. “I think they should most definitely have a say in everything.”

“Yeah, whatever,” Ingrid says. “Ideally, everything should be up to us. That’s how things’ll run smoothly.” She then turns to Dan and Phil. “Do you understand?”

They turn to look at each other for a moment, then back to Ingrid.

“Yes.”

“Of course.”

“Good.” Ingrid nods. “Sofia, if you’re not willing to talk to me, then fine. Just expect me, by myself, to be the one to make this plan successful.”

Sofia huffs. “Ingrid, I really don’t want any sort of issue, I just think we should include them in our decisions.”

They are now all out in the hallway and Ingrid quickly looks behind Sofia, down the corridor. “It won’t be an issue. I guarantee it. I’ve got everything figured out.” And, without time for anyone else to say anything, Ingrid turns around. The ice that’s still in the latte in her hand clunks against each other and the three of them just watch as she disappears.

Sofia is the first to say anything. “Well, I better get going, too.”

Dan and Phil nod.

She continues, “I’m sorry that this is ending up like this, but I do believe this is a good way to go about it.” She then smiles at them, playfully punching Dan’s arm. “Have fun, if nothing else. Dan here needs some friends that aren’t, like, piano keys or on _ Guild Wars_.”

Dan blushes. “Shhh, shut up about that, Sofia,” he murmurs, but Phil is actually smiling at him. He doesn’t think that Phil’s smiled at him since the night of the party.

Sofia starts down the hallway. “Have fun, boys. We’ll keep in touch,” she calls out and soon, Dan and Phil are alone.

They stand there in silence for a moment. Dan wonders how this is going to work at all if they can’t even make small-talk right now.

“Dan?” Phil asks without a question attached.

Dan turns to face him. “Yeah,?” 

“Since we’re gonna do this ‘fake-dating-thing,’” he makes air-quotes with far too many fingers, “And all that, we should probably get each other’s phone numbers.”

Dan nods. “Okay, makes sense.” He begins to take out his phone, but Phil taps him on the shoulder before he can actually grab it.

“Here you go,” he says, and hands a folded piece of paper to Dan. 

Dan opens the paper and reads over his number. When he looks back up, Phil is gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> if you liked this please give it a [like and reblog](https://phantasticphun.tumblr.com/post/189251725262/could-he-be-my-lover-or-is-all-of-this-pretend) on tumblr!!


	3. Chapter 3

Dan looks at the paper in his hands, wondering if he should call Phil now or later. It’s now been a few days since Sofia texted him saying that he needs to take some photos and announce the “relationship” between him and Phil via his Instagram, but Dan is still apprehensive about all of this. 

He makes a disgruntled noise and scoffs. Why would he agree with Ingrid and her plan if he couldn’t do it? There’s no time for waiting and self doubt. He’s waited long enough, he should just do it now and get it over with. He needs to call Phil and figure this post out.

He puts the paper on his desk and types the number out into the phone, calling Phil. 

After several rings, Phil doesn’t pick up, so he leaves a message.

“Uh… Hey? It’s Dan. Dan Howell. So… Sofia told me that I have to make a post about us, can we maybe meet at my place? I mean, it’s kinda last minute so I’d get why you wouldn’t wanna do it today, but I think our managers are anxious to get it out there sooner rather than later.”

He pauses for a moment before continuing.

“Anyways, just return my call whenever you can.”

He ends it all with the tap of a button and the phone beeps, telling him that his message has been recorded. Instead of listening to the playback, he hangs up.

He doesn’t want to make himself anxious by waiting for a call back, so he chooses to busy his brain by working in his office. He’s got a new melody new up his sleeve. 

-

The phone rings a few hours later, and Dan picks it up without looking at the caller ID. “Hello?” 

“Yeah, hi, it’s Phil. I’m free tomorrow morning if that works for you?” Phil asks.

Dan nods, although he knows Phil can’t see through the phone. “I’m free.” 

He recites his address out to Phil, stumbling a little bit. He wishes he weren’t so awfully awkward every second of his life.

“Great! See you tomorrow!”

Dan says goodbye, hangs up the phone, and tries to ignore the weird feeling in his chest. It’s probably just nerves about tomorrow. He’ll be fine.

-

“How do you want to pose for this?” Phil asks.

Dan pulls up examples of cute couple pictures from Pinterest and turns his laptop to show Phil. “I hope these aren’t too weird for us,” he says, a slight blush spreading over his cheeks. Honestly, he can’t believe he’s doing this. He’s never posted a picture like this before in his life.

“No offense, Dan, but this whole set-up is very weird.” Phil chuckles. Dan thinks he likes that chuckle. He wants to hear it more.

But not in a weird way. Liking a person’s laugh isn’t weird.

Is it?

-

“Come on, Dan, just hit post. What’s stopping you?” He mumbles to himself while pacing around his bedroom. 

The one they settled on is a selfie where Phil has his arm wrapped around Dan’s shoulder and he’s kissing Dan’s cheek. Dan’s face is in a bright smile, there’s a red blush on his face, his hair is slightly tousled, and he’s leaning into Phil. For a moment, Dan believes that the picture is real life, that it wasn’t just posed; that they hadn’t searched “pictures of couples” on Pinterest for inspiration. 

_ It isn’t real _ , he reminds himself. It’s not supposed to be real life. They’re just friends— just friends who happened to have slept together once at the beginning of this very strange relationship— and Phil’s made that very clear. Besides, he was just drunk and horny that night. That sex meant nothing. Dan, in his sober state, doesn’t even like Phil like that at all.

Does he?

No, absolutely not. Everyone’s just trying to plant that seed in his brain.

-

Dan is on a talk show, today. It’s called  _ Davis Daniels Daily _ and Davis has already made one too many jokes about the similarity between his last and Dan’s first name. 

Originally, it was just going to be Dan on the show. He was going to talk about  _ An Atmosphere of Affinity _ and then sing a song. That all changed, though, when the team from  _ Davis Daniels _ got in contact with Sofia and asked if Dan and Phil would come on the show together. Sofia and Ingrid talked about it quickly and then decided that they should go on and talk more about their relationship. 

Dan’s sitting in an awful orange fake-leather talk-show chair, waiting until Davis calls for Phil to come out. He’s kind of zoned out, honestly. He’s running on autopilot. He’s talked enough about  _ An Atmosphere of Affinity _ to do it in his sleep. He’s just waiting for Phil. 

Dan is shaken back to reality when Davis asks, “So in your personal life, you’ve got something big going on, don’t you?”

He shrugs his shoulders and pastes on a smile. “I guess you could call it that.  _ Something _ big.”

Davis laughs a loud, obnoxious outburst and says, “You’ve got a boyfriend!” He then addresses the audience and says, “And we’ve got him here today.”

Dan nods and continues with his half-fake smile. He hasn’t been anywhere just to talk about him and Phil, so he can’t exactly just be on autopilot for this. His heart is beating quicker and he knows it’s just nerves— he  _ knows _ it— but he can’t help them. 

“Come on, Phil, get out here why don’t you?” Davis calls, the audience surrounding them claps, and Phil comes sauntering on stage.

Phil looks so calm. He looks good and fine and definitely the opposite of what Dan is feeling right now. Phil sits in a chair beside him and they exchange a glance. Dan can tell that look behind Phil’s eyes, now. He’s putting on a facade, too.

Davis snorts again. “Look at you two! Can’t keep your eyes off each other. Too bad we couldn’t get a couch so you guys can sit closer.”

Dan and Phil nod and both half-fake a bit of a giggle. They both, honestly, have no idea how to respond, but Phil does anyway.

His face softens into a sweet smirk. “Yeah. That’d be nice. I don’t think we’re  _ too _ PDA-heavy, but it’s nice to have him close.”

The audience sighs a quick “awww” and Davis laughs again. “Not too PDA-heavy?” He says, and suddenly their selfie from a couple of days ago is on the giant screen behind him. His and Phil’s faces are  _ huge _ . “How do you explain this one then, boys?”

Dan blushes. He blushes harder than he did in that picture when Phil’s lips were on his cheek. “Well, I uh— we— we just,” Dan stammers, “We didn’t think you were going to, like, put that on your wall!”

“There were just a lot of rumours,” Phil says, picking up the conversation competently. “So we really wanted to end them all and let everyone know once and for all. And what better way than a cute photo of us?”

_ Cute! _ Dan’s heart keeps hammering. He just called them cute together!

And, of course, Dan just likes being called ‘cute’ by anyone.

Not Phil specifically.

“Right,” Dan giggles. He can’t help it.

Davis nods. “Of course, makes sense. But I suppose we won’t expect you to be kissing on the red carpet or anything?”

Dan adamantly shakes his head. “Oh, oh no. Of course not. We’d never.”

Phil raises his eyebrows for a moment, then his mouth curls up into a smirk. “Well, who knows?” 

Dan’s face flushes into a somehow even brighter red.

-

The rest of the interview, overall, goes fine enough. Dan’s nervousness never subsided much, but he was able to control it well, and honestly, he is still surprised by just how well Phil could take it all. He is most happy, though, that he won’t have to talk to Davis Daniels again any time soon. Dan finds him awfully annoying.

-

Dan and Sofia are at her apartment one evening to work together and plan a photoshoots and some more interviews. Dan sits at a table, surrounded by papers and his laptop.

“You and Phil seem… different,” Sofia comments. She hands him a hot chocolate she had been making and sits down in front of him. 

Dan looks up, the blue light from his computer glowing on his face, and rolls his eyes. “What do you mean ‘different?’ You know we’re friends.”

“Well, at the meeting only a week ago, you guys barely even talked to each other, and now you’re hanging out all the time,” she points out.

“We’re  _ supposed  _ to hang out all the time. That’s what we agreed upon.” Dan looks at her perplexed. 

Sofia sighs. “You guys are hanging out even when you’re not in public. Didn’t you guys play Mario Kart the other day? I saw the tweet.”

Dan just gives an exasperated look. “I should get to know the person I have to kiss for my job,  _ alright _ ?! And hanging out when we’re not in public just makes this more ‘real’ or whatever, yeah?!”

Dan doesn’t mean to get so loud. Sheepishly, he adds, “Sorry.”

Sofia sighs. “Dan, I’m just trying to look out for you. You can’t get attached to him because you’re ‘breaking up’ with him soon enough anyways,” she mumbles.

“Sofia, we’re  _ just _ friends.  _ You _ of all people should know that.” Dan scoffs.

“I also know you very well. You haven’t had a relationship in such a long time, and if you get attached to him, this throws a wrench in all of our plans. Just… try not to get hurt, okay?”

Dan nods at her and gets back to working. Phil couldn’t hurt him. He never could.


	4. Chapter 4

Dan and Phil have that selfie, sure, but, according to Ingrid, the public is aching for _ more _ . More togetherness, more romance, more _ Dan and Phil._ She sets up a session with a photographer that often works with Phil, a man named Rocket Rock-It. Obviously, his moniker was just a ridiculous professional name; Rocket had once told Phil that his real name is just “far too boring to be memorable at all,” but Phil’s sure he just wants something really unconventional to be called by. The man is quite unconventional overall, after all.

They’re taking pictures with him, now. Phil and Dan stand next to each other, but not too close, and Rocket has a large camera around his neck.

“Phil, sit here on this box, darling,” Rocket says, tapping the middle of a large black box with his palm.

Phil nods and sits down on the box.

“Perfect, perfect. Now Dan?”

Dan nods.

“Straddle his lap. Face him, sweetheart.”

He can’t help but blush. Then, a loud giggle erupts from him. “Excuse me?” Dan asks, incredulously. Dan looks at Phil and he’s certainly surprised. 

“Must I show you?” Rocket asks, chuckling and quickly running a hair through his long pompadour. “I think you might get awfully jealous, Dan, if I sat on your boyfriend like that.” 

Dan shakes his head. “No, no, I think I understand. I just—”

“It’ll be romantic,” Rocket interjects, then smirks. “And wonderfully sexy. Truly, a kind of deliciously wonderful shot.”

“Right,” Dan says and then meets Phil’s eyes once again. Phil shrugs and Dan shrugs back at him, barely a movement at all. “Oh, what the hell?” He whispers under his breath and then shuffles closer to Phil.

Rocket encourages, “That’s it, darling.”

Dan swings a leg over Phil’s sat thighs and shuffles up closer to him. He hasn’t been this close to Phil since that first night. 

And maybe he hates that he likes it.

There’s no room for thoughts, though, because Rocket claps and squeals, “Oh, that’s wonderful! Now go closer, I want your noses to touch.”

Dan sighs and Phil can’t help but chuckle. He scooches a few inches closer.

Rocket laughs like a song and says, “You two do love each other, don’t you? Closer, boys!”

Dan and Phil share another snicker. Suddenly, Phil grabs Dan’s ass and brings him flush against his chest. Dan lets out a surprised squeak.

“Ooh, yes!” Rocket squeals and grabs his camera from around his neck. “I like that attitude, Phil!” He backs up and then snaps a couple of pictures. “Wrap your arms around each other, now.”

Phil does immediately what he’s told and Dan has half a mind to reciprocate Phil’s actions. Despite literally screwing, this is definitely the most romantic position they’ve been in. Dan’s heart is pounding again— it’s been pounding a lot, recently— and he’s not sure why. Nerves, of course, because he doesn’t want to mess something up, but also something else. Something is fluttering in his stomach and it feels like he’s inhaled too much helium, like his head is so light he’s floating.

Rocket takes some more pictures and then excitedly says, “Nose to nose now, darlings!”

Phil inches them closer and Dan moves his hands to the nape of Phil’s neck. 

Dan wants to kiss him. _ Dan wants to kiss him._

_ Shut up, Dan. What are you on about? Stop it! _

He’s a little bit spaced out, floating down the river in Phil’s eyes, until he hears the click of the camera, bringing him back down to reality. Rocket calls for a ten minute break, and Dan shuffles off slowly and far too awkwardly to get some water.

As he takes a sip, he feels a hand on his shoulder. He yelps, not expecting it.

It’s just Phil.

“Hey, are you alright? Your demeanor kind of just… changed with that last pose,” Phil says.

Dan shakes his head and tries to smile. “I’m fine, just caught me off guard is all.”

Phil gives him a skeptical look. “Are you sure? If you want we can do this some other time? Or we could just work with the photos we have? I’m sure Rocket’s taken, like, a bunch already and we--”

Dan cuts him off. “Thanks, Phil. I appreciate the concern but I think I’ll be fine.”

“Look, I know that Rocket can be intense. If you want me to talk to him for you, then I will. Just because I like to work with him doesn’t mean you have to.” 

_ He’s so sweet. What the actual fuck? _

_ Stop it, Dan. You are coworkers. This is a strictly professional relationship with a contract, and things will go to shit if you even think about breaking the contract. So stop thinking about it. _

Dan just flashes a weak smile. “Again, I’ll be fine. But, I’ll definitely let you know if something comes up.”

Phil just gives him a smile back, and walks off elsewhere, leaving Dan to collect his thoughts before Rocket calls them back into the shoot. 

-

As Ingrid watches Dan and Phil interact at the photo shoot, she can’t help but wonder what is going on between them. They definitely seem much closer to each other than they were at the initial meeting a little over a month ago.

They have more chemistry than any other fake couple she’s tried to pair up in the past. Most of them wouldn’t even spend time with each other outside of the requirements, and they certainly wouldn’t both goof around and mumble conversations like this on a photo shoot.

Maybe she was wrong about them, that she shouldn’t have put them through this money-making, publicity stunt fake relationship.

“Dan, cut it out! You’re gonna make us fall over!” Phil whines.

Dan and Phil are back to back, arms between them holding hands. Dan keeps pushing against Phil.

“Oh, yeah? What are you gonna do then?” Dan snaps his hips back and pushes Phil off his balance again.

Phil straightens back up and turns his head backwards as far as possible to say, strangely loud through a chuckle, “You wanna find out?”

Hearing the way Phil said that definitely raises her suspicions of whether or not all of this really is pretend and it makes her feel terribly guilty. Guilty that the contract she came up with ends in a month and a half now, and Phil will have to deal with that. And Dan, too, she supposes. Guilty that she ruined Phil’s chance at having a genuine relationship with Dan without the financial aspect. 

Guilty that she exploited these two kind, wonderful men just so she can earn money she doesn’t even really need. 

She needs to find a way to fix this. Dan and Phil deserve to be treated better.

-

The photoshoot is far over, some of Rocket’s pictures have been published, and Dan is now sat, hunched over his piano. A new melody has been in his head lately and it needs to escape. Some lyrics are starting to form, too; lyrics he’s almost embarrassed to write but feels he needs to. He plays some arpeggios as he sings.

“When we started, it was quite awkward,

We would speak to each other and we kinda just…”

He laughs for a moment and then starts again.

“...We kinda just talked words,

But now, I don’t want our talking to end…”

He shakes his head. He can’t believe he’s thinking this. He can’t. _ He can’t._

But he is. He barely sings at all, more of a whisper than anything else, and he’s tearing up now. He’s tearing up against his will.

“Could he be my lover or is all of this pretend?”


	5. Chapter 5

A movie premiere comes up around the corner, and it’s one of Dan and Phil’s last public events as a couple. The movie hasn’t started yet and everyone’s mingling with each other in this grand hall outside of the extravagant theater.

Dan and Phil are like they’re in their own little world in the corner, laughing with each other instead of socializing with other well-known celebrities. Even though they look like two best friends just hanging out with each other, they’re looking at each other in the most romantic way possible. No one can miss their loud innuendos and not-so-subtle flirting either.

-

The movie is a new gay romanic comedy, because  _ of course _ Dan and Phil would be invited to such a premiere with their newfound public eye. Phil noticed before the movie that Dan was almost ridiculously fond of the idea; a romcom with two male leads, a romcom without any gendered stereotypes, a romcom that could help make LGBTQ+ characters more mainstream, and something lighthearted enough to make him laugh and forget about harsh realities for a little while.

As the movie plays along, Dan and Phil don’t even realize they’re scooching closer, as close as they can in two separate seats. Phil places a hand on Dan’s thigh and Dan places his hand on top. Soon, they’re holding each other’s hands and Dan’s heart is fluttering again.

The two main characters on screen are kissing and Dan and Phil turn their heads and make eye contact for a moment. Phil smirks and Dan blushes. He jerks his head back to look at the movie, pretending that he doesn’t want to do exactly what the two guys on the screen are doing with Phil.

-

Dan feels warm and stuffy in the room, with all of the body heat everywhere. The movie just ended, and although they could call for a cab to go home, Dan wants to spend more time with Phil.

He nudges Phil. “Walk with me outside?”

Phil nods, and takes Dan’s hand as he leads them to the exit.

“At least this time, if there are photographers taking pictures of us it wouldn’t phase anyone,” Dan jokes.

Phil doesn’t react to it, which makes Dan stop in his tracks and turn to face him.

“Are you alright? You seem nervous.”

Phil shakes his head. “No, I’m not nervous. Well, actually, I  _ am _ nervous. What am I talking about? I don’t know.”

“Hey, breathe. I don’t want you to pass out or have a breakdown, here.” Dan puts a hand on his shoulder, and Phil puts his hand on top of Dan’s. “What are you nervous about?” 

“Things… I guess. What happens to us when our contract ends?” Phil asks softly.

“We can still be friends, obviously, but I think we’ll have to control when and where we see each other. I’m sure Ingrid and Sofia have a plan for that. Why, do you not want this contract anymore?” Dan asks.

He’s trying hard to fight back tears. He doesn’t want this relationship to end. He doesn’t want  _ them _ to end.

Phil doesn’t say anything back and avoids eye contact with him. 

“Phil… you have to tell me if you don’t want this anymore,” Dan mumbles.

“Dan, I—” Phil starts, but then stops. Dan wouldn’t want to know this.

“What, Phil?”

Phil takes a deep breath. He can’t keep it inside him anymore. He  _ has _ to tell Dan. “Dan, I just… I think I’m maybe in love with you and that’s why I want this contract to end because it’s not real and since you obviously don’t love me back, I need to recover from it and—” 

“Who says I don’t love you back?” Dan interjects.

Phil looks up at him with teary eyes and holds out a shaky breath. “You...you… wait, what?” He squeaks. “You… love me? Like  _ that? _ Not like, just as a friend?”

Dan chuckles. “Took me a while to figure it out, but… yeah. I definitely think so. I don’t think it was just about getting laid that first night. I think I was genuinely attracted to you in every way.”

“Really?”

They lean in closer to each other. There’s a pause and Dan is very, very aware that Phil’s eyes are not just a dreamy, wonderful blue. They’re, like, three colors at once. Blue, green,  _ and _ yellow.

His breath is shaky as he inhales. “Can I kiss you?” Dan asks, “Properly, I mean. Not like the first time where I was trying to shove my tongue down your throat. And not those fake cheek ones we do for the public, either.”

Phil nods, and they close the gap between them.

-

Normally Ingrid would not be up this late, but she still had paperwork to fill out and it’s taking her a little bit longer than expected. Her phone rings, and she’s surprised to see that it’s Phil calling. She assumed that he was still at the premiere, she knows that these things run into the middle of the night.

“Hello, Phil? How’d the premiere go?”

Ingrid can hear the happiness in his voice through the phone. “Ingrid! It’s late, sorry, I just wanted to tell someone about this, but Dan and I had the best time tonight! We hung out in a little corner and cracked jokes while stealing the snacks. But not, like,  _ really _ stealing them. They were free. Trust me. Well, anyway, I took a few of the ridiculously fancy chocolates and put them in my pocket and he kept stealing them out, but I’ll get him back tomorrow when we meet up for drinks.”

Phil laughs into the phone, and Ingrid feels a pang of guilt in her chest.

“Anyway, Ingrid, I just want to say thank you, because if it weren’t for you, Dan and I wouldn’t have gotten close to each other. You’re a good friend.”

Ingrid doesn’t say anything, thinking about how Dan and Phil definitely have a genuine connection, and starts wondering about the whole set-up. Why did she think it was a good idea? Was she really  _ that _ desperate for money? Was she desperate to prove that she deserved to earn her university marketing degree? Phil considered her a friend and  _ this  _ is how she pays him back? Exploiting him?

She knows that she should be thankful that Phil is happy, but she can’t feel good anymore with a plan like this. It’s wrong to be profiting off of a friend’s happiness.

“Ingrid, you alright?” Phil asks.

“Oh! Sorry, yeah I’m alright. You’re welcome. You deserve to be happy.”

Ingrid knows what she has to do now, and she sends a text message to Sofia.

_ Meet me at the Starbucks close to your office building? There’s something I need to tell you. _

_-_

Ingrid walks into the coffee shop and sees that Sofia is already there. Sofia is staring out the window and drinking a coffee, but she turns her head when she hears the door open. They make eye contact with each other for the first time since the meeting, having only messaged each other through email and talking on the phone, as Ingrid takes her seat.

“I think we need to—“

“We have to talk—“

Ingrid gives Sofia a look and motions for her to continue.

“Dan and Phil have been acting different recently,” Sofia says.

“I’ve noticed.”

“How is that going to affect your whole… plan?” She asks her.

Ingrid shrugs. “The plan is off for all I care.”

A small gasp escapes Sofia. She’s pleasantly surprised that Ingrid actually feels this way, that she’s had a change of heart. For the first time since they’ve met, they actually agree on something.

Ingrid continues, “I think that something real and genuine could spark out of that relationship and it’s wrong if we-- if  _ I _ \-- continue to try to benefit off of it.”

“You really think something could happen between them?”

Ingrid nods. “They were in a room full of B-List celebrities and they were still off talking to each other without a care in the world. My former clients wouldn’t normally act like this. They certainly wouldn’t flirt and make crude jokes with each other and certainly not in settings like these.”

“I think they love each other, even if they don’t know it yet,” Sofia says, a sort of far-out, wishful smile forming on her face.

Ingrid raises an eyebrow, intrigued. “What makes you think that?”

Sofia shrugs. “They look at each other the way my grandparents do and they’ve been in love for 60 years now. It’s like they want to be together forever.” 

Ingrid nods, an almost bittersweet smile pulling at the corner of her lips.

They sip their coffees and discuss how they’re going to announce the news to the boys. Soon, though, Sofia checks her watch and gets up from her seat. It’s getting late. “See you soon, Ingrid,” she says, and she makes her way over to the exit.


End file.
